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As part of the nomination Steve will receive a $35,000 award which he intends to use to establish three additional computer centers, for a total of 13 so far. He is hopeful that this nomination will help to raise awareness for the problems faced by many Kenyan children -- hunger and the seemingly endless cycle of poverty, both of which came into focus for him when he visited a remote school in 2000 during a famine. The children in the classroom hadn’t eaten for days. “It was so hard to see,” he recalls. “It was one of those ‘change everything’ moments.” Since that day Steve has worked to provide nourishment and computer education to students throughout Kenya. "If we can feed them and teach them technology,” said Steve, “we can change the face of Kenya in a generation. And Jesus will get the credit." In addition to his nomination by CNN, Steve also received recognition from Yale University which named him as one of its Guidance Counselors of the Year for 2007 for his work as the High School guidance counselor at AIM’s Rift Valley Academy in Kenya. Yale recently admitted its first RVA graduate. As a counselor, Steve says his goal is to get kids into the college God is calling them to, and get them as much funding as he possibly can. “I know I don’t deserve any of this,” says Steve. “There are so many people more deserving than me.” Ministry, in all of its ups and downs, has taught him a lot he says. “I’ve experienced a lot of failure, and I realize how much I need Jesus. It’s all the Lord. It’s brought me to him in a different way.” See Steve Peifer on CNN: Watch Video >> What is CNN Heroes? Learn More >> Want to learn more about Steve Peifer's Computer center project? Learn More >> Bookmark             |